Experimental Investigation of an Anode Supported SOFC Stack Under High Direct Internal Reforming Conditions

Direct internal reforming (DIR) of hydrocarbons like methane can help improve both economics and efficiency of solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) systems. However, DIR can potentially damage SOFC stacks due to thermal gradients and resulting stresses. In this paper, we present experimental data from the operation of an anode supported short stack from Ningbo SOFCMAN Energy Technology. Natural gas was used as fuel, and the stack was operated under varying degrees of DIR. The reforming level was adjusted using an electrically heated reformer, and monitored with an online gas analysis. Increasing the degree of DIR had a moderate adverse effect on the stack performance. These results show that operation of stacks from Ningbo SOFCMAN Energy Technology under high degrees of DIR is feasible, while some performance decrease has to be expected.